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AHSFHS Article Series

Amazing Seasons

The Elba Tigers opened the 2011 season as the No. 3 ranked team in Class 3A.
They were coming off a 11-2 campaign in 2010 having lost in the
quarter-finals of the playoffs. It was the deepest playoff run for the
Tigers since winning a state championship on 1992.

Last season set the tone
for what would be a great year in 20111 for the Tigers from southwest
Alabama.

Opp

8

6

0

0

14

Elba

0

6

14

0

20

The Opp Bobcats
jumped out to a 14-0 second quarter lead before the Elba Tigers came roaring
back to claim a hard fought 20-14 win to open the 2011 season at home. The
Tigers scored three unanswered touchdowns behind the running of Myeke Boyd
who rushed for 57 yards and scored one touchdown.

Elba

26

Goshen

12

The No. 1 ranked Elba Tigers
scored three touchdowns in a six minute span in the second half to take
command of the game in a 26-12 win over Goshen in week two. Darrean Burks
rushed for 119 yards on just eight carries to pace the offense. Michael
Lindsey and Austin Johnson each scored twice in the game.

Elba

57

Calhoun

14

Darrean Burks
returned two punts for touchdowns as the Tigers rolled over Calhoun 57-14 in
week three. He racked up 210 yards on five returns as the Tigers completed
outmanned Calhoun. His scoring returns covered 55 and 65 yards. Burks also
ran for 48 yards on five attempts and scored one rushing touchdown.

Samson

14

Elba

48

Michale
Lindsey racked up 320 all-purpose yards in a 48-14 rout of Samson in week
four. He rushed for 171 yards on 14 carries with
touchdown runs of 6, 85, 11 and 5 yards. Lindsey completed his only pass of
the game for a 19-yard touchdown, caught three passes for 43 yards and
returned three punts for another 87 yards.

Elba

75

Geneva

14

Darrean Burks showed
off his ability to return punts once again by returning two more for
touchdowns in a 75-14 win over Geneva. The sophomore scored twice on returns
of 58 and 75 yards. The offense clicked all evening by scoring 75 points in
the rout.

Highland Home

39

Elba

14

The Elba Tigers
jumped out to a 25 point halftime lead and held on for a 39-14 win over
Highland Home the next week. Michael Lindsey scored five touchdowns in the
game while rushing for 94 yards on only 11 carries. He also returned an
interception 79 yards for a score. Darren Burks ran for 79 yards and caught
four passes for another 144 yards.

The win pushed the
Tigers record to 6-0 on the season as they celebrated a homecoming win.

Zion Chapel

0

0

0

0

0

Elba

65

Top ranked Elba
routed Zion Chapel 65-0 in week seven as quarterback Austin Johnson
completed 8-of-11 passes for five touchdowns. Jeffery Wright scored on an
83-yard run and Darrean Burks scored twice on runs of 21 and 51 yards.

Elba

63

New Brockton

14

Elba topped the
60 point mark for the third time in four weeks in a 63-14 domination of New
Brockton. The No. 1 ranked Tigers raced to an early lead behind four
touchdown passes from Austin Johnson that covered 59, 58, 14 and 61 yards.
Darrean Burks also caught a 73-yard scoring pass from Reid Rials.

Elba

27

3

35

15

80

Red Level

6

0

0

0

6

The high scoring
Tiger offense set a school record by scoring 80 points in a 80-6 win over
hapless Red Level in week nine. They led 27-6 by the end of the first
quarter and 65-0 after three periods. The Tigers ended the game having not
punting for the third consecutive week.

Cottonwood

15

Elba

69

The Elba Tigers
capped off a prefect 10-0 regular season by topping the 60 point mark for
the fifth time in the last six games in a 69-15 rout of Cottonwood. It was
the second undefeated season in the past three seasons for the Tigers.
Michael Lindsey touched the football just three times during the game but
made the most of it by scoring on each attempt. He ran for a 17 yard
touchdown and caught scoring passes of 65 and 83 yards.

Jeffery Wright
scored twice on two touches and Austin Johnson was a perfect 5-for-5 passing
for 226 yards and three touchdowns. The game was shortened in the second
half or the score may have been even more lopsided.

Houston Academy

3

3

0

0

6

Elba

0

13

7

15

35

It took the Elba
Tigers a while to get going against Houston Academy, but once they found a
way to score they didn't slow down until they sent the Raiders home with a
35-6 defeat. After Houston Academy kicked a field goal to tie the score late
in the first half, Darrean Burks returned the ensuing kickoff 69 yards for a
touchdown for a 13-6 halftime lead.

The defense held the
Raiders to just three first downs in the second half and Burks returned a
punt 77 yards for a touchdown as the Tigers pulled away from Houston
Academy.

Vincent

0

0

6

14

20

Elba

13

21

18

7

59

Elba roared to a
34-0 halftime lead behind an offense that rolled up 357 yards of offense and
cruised to a 59-20 victory in the second round of the playoffs. The defense
controlled the game as Vincent did not score until the reserves were in the
game for the Tigers.

The second half opened with a lot of excitement as the teams returned three
consecutive kickoffs for touchdowns in just 37 seconds. Tyler Anderson
took a squib kick by Vincent 58 yards for a score. Vincent's Rodney Groce answered
with a 72-yarder before Elba's Darrean Burks raced 87 yards with the ensuing
kick for a score. By then, Elba led 46-6 and coasted the rest of the game.

Elba

6

7

7

13

33

Flomaton

3

7

7

6

23

Elba only led 13-10 at the half on
quarterback Austin Johnson's 12-yard touchdown pass to Donta' Rodgers
and Michael Lindsey's 5-yard run. The Tigers then pulled away in the fourth quarter
after leading 20-17 lead after three quarters. Johnson tossed two touchdown
passes in the victory.

The Tigers improved
to 13-0 and advanced to the semi-finals of the playoffs as the defeated
Flomaton 33-23. Darrean Burks added a 5-yard run and Joshua Bonds kicked a
22-yard field goal to wrap up the scoring.

Elba

7

14

21

7

49

American Christian

9

12

7

13

41

In a game with very
little defense, the Elba Tigers outscored American Christian 49-41 to gain a
shot at a state championship the next week. The game started slow enough
with Elba clinging to a slim 9-7 lead. Michael Lindsey returned a kickoff 89
yards to give the Tigers the lead.

American Christian kicked
a field goal to take a 12-7 lead before Darrean Burks scored on a one-yard
run to give Elba a 14-12 lead. The two teams fought to a 21-21 deadlock at
the end of the first half with more wireworks to come. Elba owned the third
quarter and took a 42-21 lead late in the period. But Ameriacn Christian was
not done and managed to cut the lead to 42-35 before Darrean Burks scored on
a three-yard run to clinch the win in the fourth quarter.

Burks rushed for three
touchdown and gained 118 yards on 13 carries. Johnson completed 11-of16
passes for 268 yards and one score.

Tanner

7

7

0

0

14

Elba

7

7

13

7

34

Despite a
record for penalties, Elba rolled over Tanner to claim the Class 2A state
championship in Tuscaloosa at Bryant-Denny Stadium. The two teams fought to
a 14-14 tie at intermission but it was all Elba in the second half as they
cruised to a 34-14 victory over Tanner.

Sophomore Darrean Burks
rushed for 150 yards on 12 rushes with one touchdown. Senior Michael Lindsey
added 161 yards on 22 carries and scored three touchdowns to capture MVP
honors. He also caught a 46-yard scoring pass that gave the Tigers a 27-14
lead with 3:27 left in the game.

The win gave the Tigers
their third state championship.
They also claimed title in 1989 and 1992.

Lineman Harry Griffin,
Michael Lindsey and defensive back Tyler Anderson were named to the first
team all-state squad by the Alabama Sports Writers Association. Darrean
Burks and Martin Henderson were selected to the honorable mention team.